About OFL
Other Futures Lab explores how design can shape alternate pathways that re-center human values in an era of rapid technological acceleration. We investigate how futures might be intentionally designed to reflect care, equity, and cultural imagination—rather than efficiency, optimization, or inevitability. Our mission is to foreground value-driven futures that ask not just what is possible, but what is desirable.
YIHYUN LIM
YIHYUN LIM
Yihyun Lim is a design researcher, strategist, and professor based at USC's Iovine and Young Academy. Her work focuses on the convergence of design, emerging technologies, and future-oriented methods. Before joining USC, she directed the MIT Design Lab, where she led interdisciplinary collaborations across AI, healthcare, and the built environment. With a background in architecture and design research, her projects span interaction design, speculative systems, and participatory futures. At USC, she leads Other Futures Lab with a focus on speculative methodologies, cross-disciplinary collaboration, and systems-oriented inquiry. Her current research explores AI-human interaction, aging and wellness futures, digital twins, and hybrid craft-tech prototyping.
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FAQs
Why “Other” Futures?
Because the dominant future is only one of many. We're interested in the alternatives: futures shaped by human values, imagination, and intentional design.
What kind of work do you do at OFL?
Our work spans from conceptual frameworks to speculative artifacts, from workshop toolkits to research-based storytelling.
How do I get involved?
We welcome USC students through directed research, studio courses, and lab-based collaborations. Reach out to Professor Yihyun Lim via email (yihyun@usc.edu) for opportunities.
How can industry or organizations engage with the lab?
We collaborate with partners through research sponsorships, custom foresight workshops, co-designed prototyping initiatives, and public-facing exhibitions. Contact us to explore possibilities.